Regarding alimony between former spouses, after divorce or legal separation of people and goods, the general rule dictates that each spouse must provide for their own livelihood after divorce (article 2016, no. 1 of the Civil Code).
Together with the spouse, the ex-spouse is part of the first class of obligors. Therefore, only in their absence or if it is impossible for them to provide alimony will the persons of the subsequent class be called (therefore, the descendants), and so on (cf. articles 2009 and 2013, no. 2 of the Civil Code).
But any of them may request alimony from the other, provided it is shown that they are in a state of need and that the person giving the alimony is able to do so (article 2004 of the Civil Code).
This alimony obligation is exceptional and temporary in nature, as its purpose is to help the ex-spouse who needs alimony to meet basic needs, giving them a minimum of conditions that allow them, in the initial stages after the divorce, to readjust their lives. This obligation is due during the period necessary for the spouse to adapt to their new life, serving as support for the recovery of economic independence.
The establishment of the alimony amount depends on article 2016-A of the Civil Code, which lists several circumstances to define the alimony obligation, including the length of the marriage, the collaboration that the former spouse in need of alimony provided to the couple’s economy, their state of health, age, professional qualifications and employment prospects, the economic capacity according to their income, the reorganization of family life, among others.
The condition of being divorced, where the former spouse is the first to be appealed to for alimony, does not entail a right to alimony that is more stringent than that of other people who have never been married. In other words, article 2016-A of the Civil Code does not restrict the right of alimony to divorced people, but only presents criteria for the alimony amount, to be fixed upon verification of the assumptions of the right to alimony.
Regarding the means, alimony shall be given in monthly cash payments, unless there is an agreement or legal provision to the contrary, or if there are reasons that justify exceptional measures; and if the person obliged to provide alimony shows that they cannot provide it as a pension, but only in their home and companionship, then it may be decreed (article 2005 of the Civil Code).
Alimony becomes due from the time the action is filed, or when it is fixed by the court or by agreement, from the time the debtor is in arrears (article 2006 of the Civil Code).
03/03/2022